Judiciary Police (PJ) Director Wong Sio Chak said Tuesday that PJ officers investigated 308 alleged cyber crimes between June last year and May this year, an increase of 78 percent on the same previous period.

According to The Macau Post Daily, Wong revealed the figure during a speech at an award ceremony marking the 53rd anniversary of the founding of the Judiciary Police (PJ) at the PJ branch premises in Cotai.

In his speech, Wong said that PJ officers investigated 173 alleged cyber crimes in the previous June-to-May period.

Between June last year and May this year, the Judiciary Police also recorded 257 fraud related cases, an increase of 24.7 percent compared to the same previous period.

He said that the increase in the number of cyber crimes and fraud cases disturbed social harmony.

To further combat cyber crimes, Wong said that the PJ had recently established a computer forensics centre and improved PJ officers’ computer skills and level of information technology.

Wong also vowed that the PJ would work harder to combat fraud.

Responding to a steep increase in the number of daytime burglaries in low-rise residential buildings, Wong said that the Judiciary Police had allocated more officers to a special task force that now comprised 18 PJ officers in four teams to prevent and combat this kind of crime.

Wong also said that rising gaming- and tourism-related crimes as well as cross-border crimes were “factors of instability” affecting Macau’s public security.

Wong also said that in the May 2012 to June 2013 period, the Judiciary Police recorded two homicides, 20 cases of false imprisonment, 32 blackmail cases, 24 arson attacks, nine usury and 147 casino loan-sharking cases, 14 organised crime cases, 95 drug trafficking cases, 1,763 thefts and 125 robberies. He pointed out that not a single kidnapping case was recorded during the period.( macaunews)